KNUST Library

AfLIA celebrates the International Literacy Day

AfLIA celebrates the International Literacy Day

Today the entire world is celebrating the International Literacy Day with the theme: ‘Literacy in a Digital World’. AfLIA, the trusted voice of the African library and information community in Africa’s development is encouraging libraries to draw attention to the necessity of literacy skills in every sphere of human interactions and development. Africa has the lowest adult literacy rate whereby many parents (especially mothers) cannot help their children with homework. Throw into the mix the fact that Africa has the highest number of out of school children who either do not enroll for formal education and/or who drop out from schools before the completion of secondary school studies. It then becomes obvious that for the UN Agenda 2030 Sustainable Development Goals to be achieved in Africa, especially Goal 4 - inclusive and equitable quality education and promote lifelong learning opportunities for all – every stakeholder needs to be engaged for urgent interventions so that the continent can key into the 21sts century knowledge society properly.

Furthermore, we live in an increasingly digital world. Many activities take place online - from reading for formal and informal education, shopping, getting a ride to making friends and connections and belonging to social communities. Definite skills are needed to fully and meaningfully navigate these processes successfully online. Computer literacy skills imbues one with the knowledge and ability to use the computers and the attendant software application packages. Digital literacy encompasses computer literacy and the knowledge and ability to use those skills to go online to read, create, connect, collaborate and advocate following appropriate behavioural strategies. Digital literacy skills also enable one to effectively search, locate, retrieve, evaluate and use information from online sources and databases.
However, digital literacy skills build on traditional literacy – the ability to read, write, understand what is written and numeracy skills. Libraries play definitive roles in building literacy in communities as they provide community members of different ages with increased access to reading materials and other literacy-forming resources. The presence of Libraries of all types gives people the opportunities to be around books and information resources in different formats and this encourages reading thereby boosting literacy skills through increase in reading proficiency and vocabulary development. Libraries also help newly literate people not to relapse back into illiteracy as they get assistance and materials that will enable them to go on practicing the newly acquired skills.
African libraries now assist not only in building traditional literacy but also provide opportunities for students at all levels of education, office workers, business men and women, market women, artisans, entrepreneurs, senior citizens and job seekers to learn about digital technologies and how to effectively use them to communicate, seek and exploit opportunities as well as collaborate and connect for better living.

As the world celebrates the International Literacy Day, African Library & Information Associations and Institutions (AfLIA) the trusted voice for the African library and information community enjoins all libraries – academic, school, public and community, research and special to roll out the drums and pass on the message to their communities of users that ‘Literacy in the digital world can be and are better achieved through libraries’.

Prempeh II Library welcome you back to school.

More and more South African universities also exploring this route. Through IRs and an OJ service they can protect their own. They have after all huge IT infrastructures in place, authors, editors and reviewers are employed by these universities, libraries can assist with the metadata quality and making research more visible and measuring the impact. Therefore universities are perfectly positioned.

The News Media Section of IFLA (International Federation of Library Associations and Institutions) in partnership with the IFLA Preservation and Conservation Regional Centre for Southern Africa are planning a digitisation and digital preservation workshop for Sub-Saharan Africa. Outcomes for workshop participants and their organisations will be increased knowledge about digitisation projects, digitisation project management and digital preservation. The News Media Section in collaboration with IFLA PAC Southern Africa intends to survey the participants before and after the workshop. Plans are to hold the workshop in September 2016 in Tanzania.

If you are interested in the workshop, please complete the following questionnaire:

http://goo.gl/forms/ylR3AukBL9

At this stage we are measuring potential participants’ knowledge of digitisation and digital preservation best practices. For further details and information you are welcome to contact Mr Douwe Drijfhout at [email protected]

Kind regards

Mr Douwe Drijfhout
Chair: IFLA News Media Section
24 May 2016

Digitization experience survey These few questions will help us to set the level of the workshop. Please answer all questions. Your name, organization name, and email address will only be used for this workshop.

Coalition of Open Access Repositories (COAR) and UNESCO have published a joint statement on open access which outlines some of the concerns around the drive towards APCs. The statement is aimed at policy makers and underscores the need for a variety of OA models to be implemented around the world.

Open access is a global trend, with policies and practices rapidly being adopted around the world. As the world enters a new era of sustainable development, openness and inclusiveness in scientific research will become increasingly critical. While most governments agree on the underlying principles of open access, there is significant diversity in the way countries have approached its implementation. These differences reflect a range of perspectives, values, and priorities of the different regions. Clearly, there is no “one-size-fits-all” solution to implementing open access.

Some organizations are promoting a large-scale shift from subscriptions to open access via article processing charges (APC’s). However, there are a number of issues that need to be addressed in this model:

Consider institutions with smaller budgets and developing countries. Authors will be unable to publish once limited funds have been exhausted. Such a system will need to support researchers who cannot pay APCs – to avoid further skewing a scholarly publishing system that is already biased against the research undertaken in certain disciplines and countries.

Avoid further concentration in the international publishing industry. A flip to APCs will further consolidate the large-scale monopoly of the international publishing industry. In the current system, the five largest publishers publish over 50% of the research papers produced. (1) A mere shift towards the pay-to-publish model will institutionalize the influence of these companies, and discourage new entrants and models other than APC models.

Explore ways to reduce costs. Recent studies indicate that, at current APC costs, there would be a buffer of minimum 40% when subscriptions would be transferred to an open access model. New models should build in mechanisms that ensure cost reductions. (2) Globally, we are already paying billions of Euros/Dollars per year on subscription access to journals. Simply shifting payments to support APCs may lead to higher systemic costs, curb innovation, and inhibit the scholarly community’s ability to take advantage of new models and tools.

There are numerous high quality and economically viable journals that do not rely on APCs. Additionally, while journals play an important role, repositories have been established around the world and they represent the primary mechanisms for implementing open access in the vast majority of countries. Individual repositories are linked via national and regional discovery services like OpenAIRE and LA Referencia, and regional services are entering into agreements about data exchange that will ensure truly international and cost-effective coverage of publication output, and support the development of innovative, value added services on top of the global network.

As noted in UNESCO’s World Science Report, “The creation and transfer of scientific knowledge are critical to building and sustaining socio-economic welfare and integration in the global economy. In the long run, no region or nation can remain a simple ‘user’ of new knowledge but must also become a ‘creator’ of new knowledge.” (3) A large-scale continental shift towards a pay to publish model in Europe may have significant unintended consequences for both Europe and elsewhere by impeding global participation in the system and contribute to a more consolidated and costly scholarly publishing system.

It is imperative that governments and the research community encourage a variety of approaches to the implementation of OA. This will result in a healthier and more innovative ecosystem for scholarly publishing, and ultimately lead to greater use and impact of research.

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The full statement is also available on the UNESCO website:http://www.unesco.org/new/fileadmin/MULTIMEDIA/HQ/CI/CI/pdf/news/coar_unesco_oa_statement.pdf

www.unesco.org

http://www.yalsa.ala.org/thehub/2016/04/25/booklist-fiction-nonfiction-teen-poets-writers/

Booklist: Fiction and Nonfiction for Teen Poets and Writers - The Hub

http://www.slideshare.net/businesscollege_plmar/how-to-write-a-statement-problem

How to write a statement problem How to write a statement problem

Legacy Project Donates Books by Osagyefo Dr. Kwame Nkrumah to KNUST

Legacy Project, a non-governmental organization (NGO) under the chairmanship of Mr. Kwasi Pratt Jnr., has donated a collection of books authored by Ghana’s first president, Osagyefo Dr. Kwame Nkrumah to the Prempeh II Library also known as the University Library of Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology (KNUST). The formal presentation of the books took place at the library on Tuesday, 19th April, 2016.

Mr. Pratt stated that the donation was to ensure that Ghanaians had access to literature by and on Dr. Nkrumah to facilitate research, teaching and learning as well as to inculcate the spirit of nationalism and Africanism in the students. He noted that the books included those authored by Osagyefo himself and those written about him by other authors. It also included commentaries, stories and other scholarly literature. He stated that the donation should not be viewed as political but towards the development of our country. Mr. Pratt revealed that, so far, a hundred copies had been distributed to the University of Development Studies, the Ashanti Regional Library and now KNUST.

Professor William Oduro, Dean of the International Programmes Office, on behalf of management expressed the University’s appreciation to Mr. Pratt and his team. He said the donation of books by and on Dr. Nkrumah was not out of place in the university named after him. He said that Dr. Nkrumah’s life and works had a lot to teach Ghanaians and it was therefore good that the Legacy Project was making his works known through the donation.

Dr. Samuel Kotei Nikoi, University Librarian, receiving the books also assured the donors that the books would be added to the existing stock of books. He also promised that the books would be taken good care of to serve their intended purpose.

The free distribution of pan-African literature includes books such as Africa Must Unite, Axioms of Kwame Nkrumah, Challenge Congo, Class Struggle in Africa, Consciencism, Dark Days in Ghana, I Speak of Freedom and Ghana: The Autobiography of Nkrumah all authored by Dr. Kwame Nkrumah. Others are The Struggle Continues, Towards Colonial Freedom, Voice from Conakry and Rhodesia File.

Other books donated include Kwame Nkrumah: Contributions to the African Revolution by Doreatha Mbalia, Patrice Lumumba, Frantz Fanon and Convention People’s Party Handbook by Panaf editors. The Great Deception and Terrorism under Nkrumah authored by the Socialist Forum of Ghana were also included in the donation.

https://www.knust.edu.gh/news/news-items/legacy-project-donates-books-by-osagyefo-dr-kwame-nkrumah-to-knust

Legacy Project Donates Books by Osagyefo Dr. Kwame Nkrumah to KNUST - Kwame Nkrumah University...

Two years ago Utrecht University Library (UUL) in the Netherlands decided to focus on delivery instead of discovery. Based on international studies, users statistics, and surveys, UUL concluded that library discovery tools have become less relevant because users find their research and teaching material increasingly outside the framework of the library.

http://docs.lib.purdue.edu/charleston/2014/Users/6/

Purdue e-Pubs - Charleston Library Conference: Thinking the Unthinkable: A Library Without a... Two years ago Utrecht University Library (UUL) in the Netherlands decided to focus on delivery instead of discovery. Based on international studies, users statistics, and surveys, UUL concluded that library discovery tools have become less relevant because users find their research and teaching mate…

Infographic: How to write better science papers
Tips for writing research articles people will want to read
http://www.elsevier.com/connect/infographic-tips-to-writing-better-science-papers?utm_content=sf9196422&utm_medium=spredfast&utm_source=facebook&utm_campaign=Corporate+Comms&sf9196422=1

Infographic: How to write better science papers Tips for writing research articles people will want to read

Getting a PhD? You'll want to save (and share) this email... http://us9.campaign-archive2.com/?u=6a6b5730370231595aa3feb1e&id=4807255549

Tips for your PhD: Finish it faster and make it enjoyable!

This is the third of five posts on open education for my online open textbook, Teaching in a Digital Age. The previous two posts were:

http://www.tonybates.ca/2015/02/17/integrating-open-textbooks-open-research-and-open-data-into-teaching/

Unisa Online - Undergraduate & honours studies Making the decision to study at Unisa is an important one. Are you sure that you are ready for distance education? Have you chosen a career? Try to answer these questions before you apply for admission.

The wealth of the European Union's scientific research is to be made open to all. A year after the start of the EC's Horizon 2020 framework programme, OpenAIRE enters a new phase of funding with a continuation project: OpenAIRE2020, starting in January 2015. The initiative will implement the H2020 Open Access policies and mandates for publications and will be one of the key European infrastructures supporting the EC's Research Data Pilot.

https://www.openaire.eu/news-events/openaire2020-press-release

ATINA, an IFLA Special Interest Group of development information professionals concerned with broadening effective access to information and knowledge for development in Africa, invites proposals for papers to be presented at its Open Session during the 2015 IFLA World Library and Information Congress/ 81th Annual Conference, Cape Town, South Africa, 15-21 August 2015.

Theme
Mind the Gap! Bridging Information and Knowledge Gaps in Development and Transformation Programmes in Africa

Authors should address one or more of the following sub-themes, and use one or two relevant national, African or global policies/strategies to illustrative their findings and propositions. For gap analysis, please provide preliminary outlines of information/ knowledge gaps identified and indicate briefly how the analyzed instrument could be (or could have been) enhanced by inclusion of substantial information/knowledge dimensions to it or complemented by separate information/knowledge strategies. Authors addressing other sub-themes should also provide the various dimensions of their topics in a robust manner.

Sub-themes
• Illustrative knowledge and information gap/barrier analysis using past and present national or/and multilateral development strategies and policies

• Information intensification in the implementation of programmes and projects: methods and success stories

• Looking ahead - building on the access to information and knowledge provisions of the post-2015 development agenda

• Designing information strategies and services for complementarity and synergy with development and transformation programmes at the local and national levels

Important Deadlines
30 January Submission of proposal (700 - 1000 words).
15 February Notification of acceptance/rejection of proposal.
15 April Submission of completed draft of paper, with a commitment to attend 2015 WLIC.
25 April Submission of presentation slides ("PowerPoint").

Please email your proposal to:

Abraham Azubuike
Convenor, ATINA Special Interest Group
Email: [email protected]

For more information on ATINA, please visit: http://www.ifla.org/en/ATINA

Please note:
Every paper accepted must be presented in person by one of the authors at the IFLA WLIC in Cape Town, South Africa.

Authors are required to permit non-exclusive publication of papers chosen for this session on the IFLA website and digital repository, the IFLA Library under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 Unported License. Papers accepted but not presented in person at the conference will not be made available on the official conference website and will not be considered for nomination as a best paper of the conference.

All expenses, including registration for the conference, travel, accommodation, etc., are the responsibility of the authors/presenters. No financial support can be provided by IFLA, but a special invitation letter can be issued to authors.

Congress Participation Grants:
List of opportunities for support is available on our Conference Participation Grants webpage.

Africa has made and continues to make significant progress on adoption of access to information law. Advocates in various countries are also slowly addressing obstacles in the implementation of these laws. The experience has been mixed; progress has been uneven but the experiments being modeled in different countries show promising examples of how advocates are working to confront and overcome the obstacles to the realization of open government in Africa.

http://www.opensocietyfoundations.org/voices/making-progress-freedom-information-africa

Making Progress on Freedom of Information in Africa Thirteen African nations now have freedom of information laws on the books; the challenge now is implementation.

Knowing how and where to share your research may still seem a daunting task given the variety of channels. Ross Mounce, Community Coordinator for Open Science at the Open Knowledge Foundation, presents the best ways to ensure discoverable access to research outputs. He highlights the metadata power of institutional repositories and other services like Zenodo. With a combination of preprint & postprint postings, it is easy to make your research freely available.

http://blogs.lse.ac.uk/impactofsocialsciences/2013/05/24/easy-steps-towards-open-scholarship/

A must read for all of those who support social science researchers.

To derive the full benefit of the Frontiers in Innovation, Research, Science, and Technology (FIRST) Act, it is now extremely important that all universities and research institutions implement the faciltated copy-request Button in their institutional repositories. (The repository software as well as the Button are free for all.)

The Button ensures that even during a publisher embargo on Open Access (OA) any researcher worldwide can immediately request and any author can immediately provide a single copy of any embargoed deposit for research purposes with just one extra click each — just as long as the author’s final, peer-reviewed draft has been deposited in the repository immediately upon acceptance for publication, rather than only after a publisher OA embargo period has elapsed.

This is not OA. It is only “Almost-OA.” But the copy-request Button ensures that the immediate-deposit does not lie fallow during any allowable OA embargo period. And that’s what research and researchers need most.

For DSpace Repositories: https://wiki.duraspace.org/display/DSPACE/RequestCopy
For EPrints Repositories : http://wiki.eprints.org/w/RequestEprint

http://openaccess.eprints.org/index.php?/archives/1112-.html

RequestCopy - DSpace - DuraSpace Wiki It was suggested by Stevan Harnad in 2006 that we develop a "request Reprint by email" feature for DSpace, similar to one that was then implemented in EPprints (ttp://www.eprints.org/news/features/request_button.php) for deposits whose full-text access privileges are set to Closed Access or Restrict…